It Wasn't Me, Gawd Fired You

[ConureDelSol]

So as many of you know, I currently live at home with my parents and two demented, 87 year-olds. Because they fall and get confused and all the other wonderful things that go along with being old, we've had to hire house sitters to hang with them during the day while we're at work. We started with my bipolar drug-addicted aunt. She pretty much got fired when we called the cops on her during an episode and she threatened to chop one of the cop's heads off with a samurai sword. We then had a lady who was a CNA who we really should've looked into more before hiring. She turned out to be insane. Like "I tried to filet my stomach open with a kitchen knife once" insane. She never did anything we asked her to do, she spent most of the day chatting on the phone or on FB and was occasionally caught sleeping on the couch on the clock. She was fired in a pretty nasty scene and still continues to ask for her job back on occasion to this day.

 

Now we come to our current house sitter. She is a young mother whose qualifications were basically that she had a grandmother she took care of too. She was working on a nursing degree until she suddenly realized she probably couldn't be a nurse with a possession charge on her record. So she brings her 3 year old most of the time. Her kid draws on our carpet, breaks things, moves things around, steals things, disturbs my grandparents, terrifies our dogs, and my bird wants to DESTROY her. She is the most obnoxious child I have ever met. In addition, this woman will decide to cook things that are really messy and not clean it up. She just leaves it soaking in the sink. She is also habitually 30 minutes or more late. Until my mom jumps on her, she just won't do things we ask her to do. Then she'll suddenly be good for a week and then go back to her old habits. Also, she never EVER mentions "Oh my kid broke this thing. I'm really sorry." or anything like that. Instead, she just acts like nothing happened and leaves it for us to find. She is one of the few people who gets along with Skittles, so sometimes, if I have school or errands I'll leave him out while she's there. One time, came home an hour and a half after she left and he was SITTING ON HIS PERCH IN THE LIVING ROOM. We have cats that would love to eat him. She didn't put him in his cage like I asked her to. She just left him out. By himself. For an hour and a half. HOW THE FUCK DO YOU DO THAT?!

 

Anyway, back to the main reason for this topic, my parents recently managed to hire a CNA who actually like, knows how to do things. So last night, my parents basically fired the other woman (she's staying for another week and then gets another week of severance pay). Instead of mentioning some constructive criticisms about why we can't handle her working for us anymore, my parents wanted to let her down easy.

 

It basically went like this: "Sometimes God opens a door and we have to take it. This is no reflection on you or anything you did, we're just trying to use this blessing God has given us."

 

First off, that is a complete and utter lie. We were looking for someone to replace her. We couldn't stand that she brought her kid, even when we asked her not to. We couldn't stand that she lied, didn't do things we asked, or that she was totally neglectful about telling my mom that my grandpa thought he was having a heart attack. Since she has worked for us, she has broken her foot and her wrist at home and has tried to watch my grandparents on pain meds with a three year-old running about. There is no way she is giving them the care they need. IT WAS TOTALLY A REFLECTION ON HER.

 

I was thinking if I were in her shoes I would be totally pissed. You know that they fired you for a reason, but they won't tell you why so you can improve on it in the future. You know they hired the new person because they preferred her to you. Instead, they bring God into the conversation and basically say that it's God's fault you were fired.

 

She seemed to take it okay over the phone and she's acting normally today, but I know she has to be panicking and raging a little inside.

 

Am I right to be totally disturbed by this and to think that the way my parents handled this was wrong? I mean, yes, she needed to be fired, but I feel like the way they let her go was totally wrong.

[GardenerGal]

If she doesn't know the truth, how can she choose to do better next time? That's not fair to her or her next employers.

 

Do you have to worry about her retaliating in any way?

 

BTW, glad your bird was not harmed -- that would have upset me a great deal to find my pet left unsupervised and in a dangerous situation.

[TrueFreedom]

Maddening--they were more concerned with avoiding the distress of confrontation than with helping her to grow. They are hypocrites and liars.

[midniterider]

Looks like they didnt want to deal with a scene, especially if they were going to let her work another week. I'd have a hard time trusting someone I just fired to take care of my elderly parents for another week. I don't know why anyone would buy that line either. Doubtful she did, but what the hell, gotta pretend you're not pissed in order to get that final two weeks of pay.

 

Why dont you write her a letter telling her how to improve herself and mail it in a month? Though it sounds like she was told several times what the expectations were and she 'failed to respond to training' , as my old job might have put it. So it might be a waste of time giving her instruction.

 

As far as it being handled wrong, it's just business. Fired is fired whether gawd does it or someone else. :-) It sucks when you have to be the one to cut off someone's meal-ticket. Yes, it's a lie and that's what people do. They lie. :-)

[TrueFreedom]

I wouldn't have given her notice. I would have told her early on what needed to improve and then let her go if it didn't.